According to FAA data, there are over 400 registered Velocities in the US. The XL is the biggest and most capable version – a serious travel machine, but still a kit-built aircraft at heart.
Technical overview – Velocity XL-RG:
Cruise speed: 190–200 KTAS
Range: approx. 1,000 NM
Ceiling: up to 25,000 ft (in principle)
Pressurization: None
De-icing: None
Oxygen: Required above 12,500 ft (US regs: if more than 30 minutes)
The aircraft can climb high – but it’s a non-pressurized piston aircraft. That matters when the weather turns rough, or when a tempting shortcut leads through trouble.
Flight report: KEYW – KDAB (aborted)
I planned a simple cross-state flight from Key West (KEYW) to Daytona Beach (KDAB). Nothing special on the METARs – some isolated storms forecast. I launched in the Velocity XL, expecting a smooth ride and maybe a bit of dodging.
But what appeared wasn’t a cell – it was a full storm front, stretching across my path with no way under, over, or around.
Let’s be clear:
This is a fast, responsive aircraft – but it’s not built for weather penetration. No radar, no de-icing, no margin of error. So I turned around and diverted south.
Emergency landing: KTNT – Dade-Collier Training and Transition Airport
I ended up at KTNT, one of those ghost airports deep in the Florida Everglades. A 10,500-foot runway with no tower, no lights, no life. Originally built for supersonic aircraft in the 1970s – now just a stretch of hot concrete.
But for me, that day, it was perfect.
Lessons from the cockpit
The Velocity XL is a capable aircraft – but it comes with limitations. It's not IFR by default, and in real-world terms, it’s a “weather-permitting” VFR platform, unless heavily modified.
In the sim, as in real life, you learn quickly:
Altitude ≠ immunity
Speed ≠ invincibility
Experimental ≠ careless
And yes – you can fly high. But above 12,500 ft, even in the sim, oxygen matters if you’re doing it with any sense of realism.
Summary
If you want a GA aircraft in MSFS that’s not another Cessna or Piper clone, the Velocity XL offers something unique: sleek lines, responsive controls, and a mindset that belongs more to engineers and adventurers than checklist warriors.
The TDS GTN 750 is supported and works beautifully – but it’s optional, not required. You can fly this aircraft by the book with simpler avionics, as long as you understand what you’re doing.
But it’s still a piston aircraft, with all the vulnerability that implies.
(MSFS 2020, Just Flight
https://www.justflight.com/product/blac ... elocity-xl
